You Gotta Lotta Nerve

Greetings All ~

The need for maintaining our nervous system is vital. This system signals all the other systems how to respond to varied stimuli we continually encounter.

Now that we are in another surge of Covid-19 brought on by a new highly contagious variant, the ability to respond quickly and efficiently is tantamount to our mental, physical and spiritual well-being.

What did you just taste, chew and swallow?
How much sun did you get?
What did your boss just say?
What's that smell?
How much screen time did you log?
What is that bacteria that entered?
What's bumping into your aura?

The health of the nervous system determines how well those questions (and so many more of which we're not aware) are detected and processed. It sends its findings to the hypothalamus which transmits the notes to the pituitary, our master gland. The pituitary then responds by sending hormones and neuropeptides accordingly. It doesn't take much to assist this cycle in its accuracy, clarity, and velocity.

Simple movement will open energy channels in the physical body. Following it with a cleansing breath will detoxify these channels for their greater efficiency and strength. Recently, I've been practicing an effective pairing of a yoga set and meditation.

First, do the aptly named kriya "Short and Sweet." Follow it with the pranayam "Meditation to Balance the Hemispheres-1" (directions below). You can do them separately as well.

Meditation to Balance the Hemispheres I
Posture: Sit in Easy Pose with a straight spine. Raise both hands to shoulder level with the palms facing forward. The hands, elbows, and shoulders are on the same plane.

Mudra: The fingers are split like Dr. Spock, but with both hands raised. The Jupiter (index) and Saturn (middle) fingers are together and the Sun (ring) and Mercury (pinky) fingers are together. Stretch the Saturn and Sun fingers away from each other. The thumbs (Earth/Ego) are also extended, away from the hands. Keep the hands active, but relaxed.

Eyes: Eyes are open, focused at the tip of the nose.

Breath: Inhale in 10 equal parts. Exhale in 10 equal parts. Breathe gracefully and with ease. 

Time: Continue for 11 – 31 minutes.

To End: Inhale deeply and stretch arms and spine up completely; exhale powerfully. Keep the posture and repeat this two more times. Relax. Sit quietly for a minute or two.

Focusing the eyes on the tip of the nose controls the optic nerve, which stimulates the sensory system of the brain. By splitting the fingers you are controlling both hemispheres of the brain. By separating the thumbs you are separating the ego. As with any meditation, you will find yourself calm and refreshed. Stand by your own experience.

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Feel free to do the exercises at you own pace and make any modifications for your body you may need to consider. You can always contact me for those. The whole package takes as little as 35 minutes start to finish!

Get rest, hydrate, eat clean and stay in touch.

Live Long and Prosper,
Vicky Jap Dharam Rose

The Time Between

Greetings All ~

I'm waiting. The property I'm selling is in escrow. I'm waiting and I don't like it. I'm waiting for someone else to decide what happens next. I don't like it.

I became curious about this grumpiness. Is it based in unpredictability or lack of control? Can I do something to get this whole thing wrapped up? It's like baking. Following a recipe, you combine measured ingredients in a certain order, put them in a correctly-sized container and bake them at a specified temperature for a predetermined amount of time. I'm not good at baking. There are these "wait times" for the dough to rise, the oven to preheat, the cake or the pie to cool. But, when I've respected and surrendered to those times, the experience has been sublime and the final product relished.

Humans have come up with many "wait times."

• Purgatory is, according to the belief of some Christians, an intermediate state after physical death for final purification. It is not eternal. There is a chance at redemption, which is entirely different from the eternities of heaven or hell.

• Barzakh (برزخ), in Islam, is where souls wait after death for the accounting of their earthly actions.

• Bardo is the Tibetan Buddhist term for the intermediate state we experience between death and our next rebirth. This is considered a particularly good time for enlightenment.

There are lesser-known bardos that include the bardo of dreaming and the bardo of meditating. These are spaces of creativity and innovation that can be used in this physical lifetime. In meditation practice, you can notice nonconceptual activity in the gap between thoughts.

So really, thereisactivity in these "wait times." There are things happening. It's not a static space. In the yogic world, it is said that transformation comes at the top and bottom of each breath. In the microscopic sliver of time it takes to switch from inhale to exhale, and vice versa, transformation and change occur.

Again we get back to the basics of breath. It is the rhythm of our eternal truth. If you inhale deeply and hold the breath, you can say your prayer, state your wish, or envision your dream. Exhale gently and sweetly, but thoroughly. And start again. Try this for 3 minutes a day, anytime, and as many times as you need.

Please let me know how you're doing.
I learn so much from you.

All Good Things,
Vicky Jap Dharam Rose